


The Head Knows What The Heart Wants

by afteriwake



Series: Fandom Christmas In July - 2018 [12]
Category: Sherlock (TV)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Annoyed Sebastian Moran, Annoyed Sherlock Holmes, Bedroom Sex, Bedrooms, Bickering, Canon Rewrite, Carrying, Cell Phones, Comforting Sebastian Moran, Comforting Sherlock Holmes, Developing Molly Hooper/Sebastian Moran, F/M, Frantic Mary Morstan, Friends With Benefits, Friends to Lovers, Gun Violence, Gunshot Wounds, Injured Molly Hooper, Living Together, Male-Female Friendship, Mentioned Jim Moriarty - Freeform, Minor Mary Morstan/John Watson, Molly Hooper/Mary Morstan Friendship, Not Canon Compliant, Other Additional Tags to Be Added, POV Sebastian Moran, Past Sebastian Moran/Jim Moriarty - Freeform, Phone Calls & Telephones, Post Episode AU: s02e03 The Reichenbach Fall, Protective Mary Morstan, Safehouses, Sharing a Bed, Teasing, Truce, Worried Sebastian Moran, Worried Sherlock, protective sebastian moran, splitting up
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-08-01
Updated: 2019-03-18
Packaged: 2019-06-19 21:08:31
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 8
Words: 6,549
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15518616
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/afteriwake/pseuds/afteriwake
Summary: After the revelation that there had been some plotting between Moriarty and Eurus before his death, Sebastian Moran had decided to do whatever it took to keep Molly safe...even if that meant ruining whatever the results of his ex-lover's collusion with the Holmes sister were. But after enough time had gone by, things changed, and that was when Eurus decided to strike. That was when Sebastian couldn't deny the truth any longer: Molly Hooper had become the most important person in his life...and he would do whatever it took to make sure she was safe.





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

  * For [Dreamin](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Dreamin/gifts).



> This will most likely be the last of my Christmas in July fics, but **Dreamin** has had a bad day and I wanted to cheer her up. This fic answeres the CiJ prompt " _bed sharing_ " as well as the claimed prompt " _The tiny one let’s the big one rest on them every now and then but careful don’t smoosh them_."

“Ugh. I hate men,” Molly said, nearly slamming his front door behind her. For such a tiny woman, she could certainly slam things when she got angry. Tiny Molly full of rage was a sight to behold. He was kind of glad Jim never saw it because honestly? It was cute as hell and oddly arousing at the same time. 

“Present company excepted?” he said, not even looking up from the stir fry he was working on. Authentic Chinese spices, too, and all sorts of seafood. Her favourite, which he’d figured she’d need after the “I hate my landlord” text she had sent.

“Of course, Seb,” she said. “A blasted pipe breaks and floods my home, and the landlord decides _I’m_ at fault and then propositions me to take care of what was already his problem to take care of? Ugh.”

Seb grinned. “I assume the Holmes brothers are already taking care of the landlord?”

She nodded. “Now I just need to find a place to stay while I deal with everything.”

“I have one bed.”

“But it’s a comfortable bed.” He felt her rest his cheek against his back. “And it’s big. We can share.”

He sighed and shook his head. “And Holmes says you’re a pushover,” he said. Her cheek was replaced by the sharp smack of a hand, and then he felt arms around his waist. “Alright, he doesn’t, but you are.”

“And so are you.” They were, currently...something. Definitely friends, with some added benefits, and...whatever else, he wasn’t sure. He had never been the type to have friends before in the first place. But when Jim had confided the crazy plan he had and the fact there was someone _even crazier_ in the background he’d colluded with and had just told him to keep Molly safe…

It was supposed to be something other than what it was, but he wouldn’t give up what it was for anything, really. Even if they weren’t a thing, she was there, a speck of light in the darkness. And he’d take what he could get.

Oh, he’d had to come clean to the Holmes brothers, and that had led to a rather...interesting...discovery for Sherlock. Poor sap had spent most of his childhood and all of his adulthood not knowing about the crazy sister lurking in the trunk of the family tree, and once they’d had their little spat and he’d brought their attention back to the important matter at hand, they’d planned on ways to keep Molly safe. But after a few attempts at playing games with her brothers, Eurus had backed off, and there was a peace of sorts. Whatever she’d planned with Jim, though, he had the feeling it hadn’t come to fruition yet.

At least coming clean to Molly had been so much easier. Before he’d been Jim’s friend and roommate. Now that she knew he was more? It had taken time getting used to each other again, to trust each other, but he knew more about her than even Holmes’s deductions could figure out, and she knew everything about him. There weren’t secrets between them. He was done with secrets, done with his old life, done with everything that made him Moran.

Now he was Seb, and he had to admit, he liked that more.

“So is your bed going to be clothing optional while I stay here?” she asked.

He chuckled at that. “You know I sleep better starkers.”

“Oh good, because I literally only have the clothes on my back tonight,” she said. “I’ve only gotten to survey the damage, not actually catalog it and take everything into account of what’s salvageable and what’s not.”

“Well, you can steal a shirt if you have to keep covered.”

“Oooh, can I have the steel blue one?”

“But that brings out my eyes,” he said with a mock pout, and she tightened her hold around his waist and chuckled into his back. The vibrations felt nice. It all felt nice, really.

“Well, maybe I’ll sleep starkers too,” she said.

“You do that, you won’t sleep,” he pointed out.

“Shagging is good stress relief, and I am rather stressed,” she said, a teasing tone in her voice.

“Dinner first, shagging for dessert.”

“Fine,” she said. She pressed a kiss to his spine on his shirt and then let go, moving to his side and hauling herself onto his worktop next to the stove. “Thank you, Seb.”

“Welcome,” he said. “Did you do your Christmas shopping yet?”

She shook her head. “Not yet. Mary and I had it planned for later in the week when she can arrange some time from the surgery.”

Seb grinned at that. He knew Mary, had known her for a while, at least by reputation. Molly would be safe enough in the presence of an ex-CIA assassin. “Get me something nice.”

“I’ll get you a bottle of good whiskey,” she said with a smile. “And you can lick it off of me.”

“Waste of a good whiskey,” he said with a smirk, and she reached over and hit his shoulder but she was smiling. Good. He’d make sure the smile stayed on her face tonight and that contented purr that came from low in her throat after a good shag would lull him to sleep.

But first? Dinner. He had a job to do taking care of her, after all.


	2. Chapter 2

“Oh, my God! Seb!”

His hands were firm on her waist as he pistoned upward, wanting her to take him as deeply as she could. He watched her on top of him, her pert breasts bouncing just a bit and the look of ecstasy on her face nearly making him come in her then. But first, he wanted her to have her fair share of pleasure. He was a considerate lover, after all.

He moved one hand from her waist and teased the sensitive nub of flesh he knew would make her go wild as she leaned back some. She gasped and he could feel her inner walls constrict around his cock, and with one last thrust up he came as she pulsed around him.

After a moment she leaned forward, her arms haphazardly around his neck, her breasts resting on his chest, and he let his fingers play along the skin of her sweat soaked back, idly tracing shapes on it. “Mmmm, need to clean up,” she said, nuzzling her nose into the crook of his neck.

“You are allowed to rest first,” he said, letting his hands cup her arse. He was still inside her and to be honest, he didn’t want to move. She had done most of the work tonight and he could just imagine how she felt.

“Bath sounds good,” she murmured.

“You’re sleepy.”

“You wore me out,” she said, and he could feel her lips curl against his skin.

“So I take it I’m better than your landlord?”

“Much better,” she said, pressing a soft kiss against his skin.

“I can carry you to the tub, clean you up, make sure you don’t drown when you fall asleep,” he said.

“I don’t deserve you,” she murmured.

“No, you deserve better,” he said.

“Are we going to have this argument again?” she asked. “Because I like _you_. I’m happy with all this. Maybe...more?” She lifted her head up, moving a hand to trace a finger along his jaw. “When the flat gets fixed up, move in with me. Bring the bed and your clothes and your spice cabinet.”

“How long have you been thinking about this?” he asked, bringing a hand up to tuck her hair behind her ear.

“A little while,” she admitted. “I don’t...I don’t want to be with anyone else. And I know that you don’t think I should lower my standards but you, Sebastian Moran, is what I want. Just you.” She had been punctuating her words with the occasional kiss, and after the last statement, she kissed him on the lips, something she’d been rather loathed to do before. She’d always been affectionate, showering him with kisses elsewhere, but there was an ease to this kiss, and a feeling of contentment washed over him.

When she pulled away she curled into him and he wrapped his arms around her, pressing a kiss into her hair. “So you’re going to throw your lot in with me?”

She nodded. “As long as there are no secrets. I don’t...no more secrets.”

“I promise, those days are past,” he said. He stayed quiet for a moment. “You do realize you’re my first girlfriend since I was a teenager? Not that that relationship had lasted long.”

“Well, you’ll just have to work very hard to be with me longer.”

“I don’t think I’ll have to work that hard,” he said with a deep chuckle. “You have me wrapped around your finger and you know it.”

She chuckled and then let her hand drift lower, encircling his shaft and damn it she didn’t have some arcane power to make him hard again at such a soft touch, as she moved her hand up and down a few times. “Seems my finger isn’t the only thing I like to have wrapped around you. Or at least the only part I like to have my fingers wrapped around.” She ducked her head down. “That sounded so much sexier in my head.”

He chuckled and rolled over so he was on top of her as she continued to tease him. “You’re sexy enough as it is, Molly.”

“Good,” she said before taking her other hand and pulling him in for another kiss. After she got him hard again he entered her slowly, taking his time to bring her back to the peak of pleasure. And when she bit his shoulder to muffle the sound of her moan, he knew the next day he’d be subconsciously running his fingers over her mark on him.

How he had gotten as lucky as he had, he’d never know.


	3. Chapter 3

“I have no idea what she sees in you,” Sherlock said, tossing a ball up and down as he lounged in Seb’s only decent seat. They were supposed to be having a meeting about what plans that Eurus might make next, a meeting Mycroft was conspicuously absent from and as far as Seb knew was intending to stay far away from, but if he was going to be in charge of keeping Molly safe, he set the terms of the meetings. And if he couldn’t be arsed to leave his flat? The Holmes brothers could come to him.

“Honestly, Holmes? I don’t either,” Seb said. “But I’m grateful she sees something in me.” Seb kicked Sherlock’s legs out of the way so he could get to the other chair. Sherlock was in what had basically become Molly’s chair because it was the most comfortable, but this one he was in had been one of the few pieces of furniture that had gone from the pits of poverty with him to the jewel that was his flat when he lived with Jim and then back to this, somewhere in between. It was a piece of history he could touch after he had tried to shed or shred so much of his past.

“But really. What is it?”

“My big cock is probably a help,” he said, getting annoyed with the conversation. Holmes made a face and missed the ball, and Seb was amused watching it hit him in the face and then fall to the floor and roll away. “You don’t want the blunt, honest truth, don’t ask.”

“I won’t ask ever again, at least around you.” He got up and then went for the ball, and then froze as he straightened up. “Though I am curious. You and Moriarty…?”

Seb nodded. “Not that it was a healthy relationship, but yes. We shagged. I’m bisexual. Do you have an issue with that?”

“I’m not exactly straight myself,” he said in reply. “Never thought about it until I was asked by a reporter, but I suppose I’m...demisexual aromantic?” He sat back down. “I think that was what Molly suggested.”

“Sounds about right.” Seb looked over at him. “You know she still cares about you, right? I may be something with her, but you’re still her friend and she cares about you deeply. She wants us to get along.”

Sherlock was quiet for a moment. “I suppose I can be less of an arse.”

“You give an inch, I’ll give an inch. Eventually, we might meet in the middle and we’ll both make her happy.” Seb was going to say more but his mobile rang. It was Mary, and he had been expecting a call from one of the two women during their shopping trip. He put the phone to his ear. “Hello?”

“Bastard,” she said, and she sounded out of breath.

“Pardon?” he asked. Then there was the sound of a scuffle and he bolted out of his seat, gesturing for Sherlock to come closer and put it on speaker. Soon there was a sound of the phone being picked up. “Mary?”

“He...got Molly,” she said, and Seb felt his insides freeze. “She’s bleeding. Passerby called for emergency.”

“Molly got shot?” Sherlock asked, nearly shouting.

“Minor...wound. Concussion worse.” She sucked in a sharp breath. “Which hospital?”

“Royal London,” Sherlock said. “Mycroft has vetted the staff at the A&E. Where are you?”

“Soho.” 

“If Mycroft isn’t ignoring all of us completely he’s been alerted,” Sherlock said. “Get Molly there in your own vehicle if you can. Don’t wait for emergency service. Ask for Lucinda when you get there.” He motioned to the door and Seb headed that way, keeping the phone on speaker and grabbing his car keys. “Make sure you are armed.”

“Noted,” Seb said. He got his gun from its hidden compartment in the bookcase by his door. After a moment he and Sherlock were both out the door. He didn’t even lock it behind him. His sole concern was to get to Molly and make sure she was safe.

Make sure she was alive.


	4. Chapter 4

“This is not how I intended to spend my day Christmas shopping,” he could hear Molly grumble from the room she was in. Mycroft must have seen the attack after all because there were two guards on Molly’s door, and when they got inside Mary was sitting there, checking her gun. She had a scrape on her face that was stitched up but she still looked fine. “Rosie wasn’t with you, was she?” Sherlock asked, going to Mary and looking at her. As much as he cared for Molly he cared the same amount for Mary and Seb was sure Sherlock knew Molly would be well taken care of.

“No, she was with her father today. I know there had been whispers that something was coming so if I was out with Molly, I didn’t want to risk her getting hurt.” Her hands were shaking, he could see that, and Sherlock grasped them in his and squatted in front of her, massaging them. It was a soft gesture, something he hadn’t expected from the man, but it did boost his estimation of Holmes a bit.

“We’ll get you something nice to make up for lost gifts,” he said, going over and sitting on the edge of her bed. “Since you’re up and talking, not a bad injury?”

“Bloody painful, though,” she said. “And I got lucky because I got hit in the buttocks. And if you laugh, Seb, you’re never seeing it naked again.”

“Duly noted,” he said, reaching over and tucking her hair behind her ear. “I’ve had it happen, I know just how to deal with taking care of you. Which I’m going to do somewhere other than London.”

“Good idea, Moran,” Sherlock said, letting go of Mary’s hands. “Mary and John can go with you. I’ll stay here and deal with the mess. If my sister’s end goal is to kill me once and for all, I’ll make it as hard as I can for collateral damage.”

“You might want to send the copper, too,” he replied.

“No. It’s better if we split up. Greg and his daughter off to one place, John and I someplace else, and if Seb is anything like me I’m sure he’s got a decent safe place he can go to,” Mary said, shaking her head. “But we all need to get the hell out of London and stay as off the grid as we can.”

“Contacting each other, though?” Sherlock asked.

“Ask your brother for special laptops and cells,” Seb said. “He has MI-6 connections, they have ways to secure electronics so they can’t be traced. But I’m getting Molly the hell out of here and forgive me if I don’t tell you where.”

“Same here,” Mary said as Sherlock opened his mouth to object. “Sherlock, I love you like a brother, but if you’re the target, the less you know the better, and you know it. But we’ll have the secured tech. You will too, and we’ll keep in touch.” She thought for a moment. “You should tell Irene there’s a threat.”

“Irene? As in Irene Adler? She got killed in Karachi, didn’t she?” Seb asked.

Sherlock shook his head. “No, she’s alive. We...text,” he said, looking almost sheepish at the admission. “I’ll tell her. Perhaps she can collect Lestrade and his daughter before she goes to safer ground.”

“Sounds like a good idea,” Mary said. “As soon as we get the computers and cells, we should go. Get what we can on the way if it isn’t already there. Don’t bother going back home.” Then her eyes widened. “John--”

“He knows,” Mycroft said as he stood in the doorway. “There are cars downstairs with vetted drivers. I had assumed leaving London would be what all of you decided and I have no objections. You each have a bag packed in the boot. Mary, while they are not the gifts you bought, Rosie has some things because she shouldn’t have less of a Christmas for all this. I was assured she should like them. Sherlock, Mrs. Hudson has left to go on holiday until this is over so I would feel it best if you stay with me.”

“Fine,” Sherlock said with a nod. 

Mycroft moved over to Molly. “My apologies for the discomfort, Molly. I will make it up to you.”

“Thank you,” she said quietly. “Can Seb and I go now?”

He nodded. “Yes. The things you need to tend your injury are also in the boot. I’m sure Mr. Moran will take good care of you.”

“Damn straight,” he said before easily picking Molly up out of the bed and cradling her against him. She looped her arms around his neck and snuggled into him. “See you when we see you.” And with that, he carried her out of the room, a suited minion of Mycroft’s by his side to take him to the car. He should have done a better job, he told himself, but he’d make sure he did the best job possible now.


	5. Chapter 5

She didn’t seem to pay very much attention as to where they headed; once they boarded a plane she said she knew they’d be a ways away from London because he wouldn’t take her to someplace as close as Ireland or Wales by plane. She figured they were heading out towards the States, and that was enough for him, especially as she was still drowsy from the pain medication she had been given. It was uncomfortable to sit on her arse but he knew it could have been worse, and the knowledge was enough to make her as comfortable as possible.

Not that it mattered if she knew where they were going or not; New York City was one of the largest cities in the world and certainly one of the most populated, so if she knew where they were there was still so many places they could get lost. He’d had a few places in his name but this particular place, a penthouse in one of the most exclusive buildings in New York, was the only one he’d really kept in good repair and paid a pretty penny for. Jim had taken one look at the place and given it a flat no but he’d been enamoured and paid for it out of his own funds.

He managed to get Molly and Toby, who had been in the car in London along with the things they needed, into a cab and then headed uptown to Manhattan. His penthouse had a nice view of Central Park so at least if they were stuck inside the view would be nice. He’d wanted to bring her there on holiday at one point but it looked like, as usual, his plans were subject to change.

She woke up as he was paying their driver, and she looked around. “New York?” she asked before yawning.

He nodded. “Manhattan,” he said, finishing up and reaching for the carrier between them. “I’ll get Toby out and then get the door for you. We can have the doorman bring up the rest of the stuff.”

“Doorman?” she asked.

“You have a place like this in the city, you get a doorman,” he said with a grin. Maybe this wouldn’t be so bad after all if he could surprise her. “I made a pretty penny at my old job.”

“I can see that,” she said, turning to look out her window at the building. He got the cat out and then walked around the cab to the pavement and set the carrier down to help Molly out. The tip must have been nice enough because the driver was already out getting the bags from the back and handing them off to the doorman, who nodded at Moran and Molly.

Molly got out gingerly and he turned to the doorman. “I can handle those, Eric,” he said.

The doorman nodded. “Very good, Mr. O’Callahan. Will you be needing anything?”

“Cancel the maid service until I go back home,” he said. “We can handle any cleaning that needs to be done. Is the refrigerator stocked?”

“Yes sir,” Eric said.

“Good.” He pulled out his wallet and peeled off some twenty dollar bills and gave them to Eric. Eric grinned and pocketed the tip before carrying the bags into what looked like a private elevator. Wallet still out, he pulled out a card and slipped it into a slot on the wall, and the elevator doors opened. “Private elevator,” he said to Molly.

“Seb, how much money do you have, exactly?” she asked.

“More than Mycroft,” he said. 

“Then why do you have the flat in London?” she asked once they were in the elevator.

“Because most of it is tied up in investments,” he said. “I don’t generally touch more than what I need, and I try and put the rest into making up for things. This is about the most extravagant thing I’ve allowed myself to keep.”

“Ah,” she said with a frown. “I just...we said no more lies.”

“No lie, love,” he said. “I would have told you before we began to live together and especially if it had moved into more,” he said. “I wanted to bring you here for New Year’s. It had been one of my planned gifts.”

“Oh,” she said, looking a bit more mollified. He pressed the button for the penthouse suite and the elevator went up as he pulled her into his arms. “I’m sorry.”

“It’s alright,” she said. “Considering Jim wore Westwood on a regular basis, I should have expected you’d be wealthy as well.”

“He tended to spend lavishly. I saved and invested,” he said. “We both came from poverty, but I learned some valuable lessons from my mam about making things stretch.”

“Your mam?” she asked.

“My grandmum,” he said. “I think you would have liked her. I know she certainly would have liked you. How do you think I learned to cook so well?”

She smiled into his chest and tightened her hold on him. “Well, I’m sure she could have taught me a few things. Guess you’ll have to do it instead.”

“Guess I will.”


	6. Chapter 6

The building wasn’t as high up as some of the others in the city, especially in this part of Manhattan, but the view of Central Park was pretty spectacular. He’d wanted to be close to something living and thriving the way Central Park did, and he’d been pretty glad that Jim had turned his nose up at this for a flat for them. The one they had ended up getting in New York was in the heart of the business district, and he’d always hated it. But he had kept this place from Jim as best he could, so this was the safest of safehouses he had access to, because if Jim didn’t know about it than Eurus wouldn’t either...he hoped.

Molly got herself as settled as she could on the sofa and leaned against the arm of it. While this was a penthouse and there was a certain look he felt needed to be maintained, everything had been designed with comfort and ease first. Right now he had the feeling Molly would appreciate that, especially since once he got their things stowed he saw she had fallen fast asleep again.

Whatever narcotics they gave her must be working wonders.

But he didn’t want to dwell on that. Mycroft had made a rather good guess at what the plans of two ex-assassins and his brother would be if something like this had happened, and there were two burner cells and two laptops in the third bag he’d brought up, along with the things Molly might need to tend tot he gunshot wound. Not that he didn’t have the items on hand just in case he needed to be there and he was injured, but it was nice to have more if it was needed. Less reason to go out for a few days until he got the lay of the situation.

And speaking of that…

He got one of the mobile phones and saw there were numbers listed in it already. Good. Should Molly worry about Mary or Sherlock, she could get a hold of them. He was surprised they had each gotten a phone as opposed to the one it looked like the Watsons had, but that wasn’t his main concern. His main concern was calling Mycroft now that they were settled and finding out exactly what the hell had happened during the shopping trip.

He dialed the one that said M, knowing that would be Mycroft’s number as it was at the top, and he waited. He knew there was the time difference but frankly, he didn’t care. “Moran,” Mycroft said when he answered. “Are you both settled?”

“Molly’s asleep on the sofa, as comfortable as she can be. I’m not exactly settled, but I want details. Was your sister behind this?”

“I’m afraid so,” he said. “My sister seems to believe that Molly is the key to breaking my brother. She tried when they were children but the situation is a bit more...complicated.”

“How so?” Moran asked, feeling the hairs on the back of his neck stand up as he guessed what Mycroft was going to say.

“She’s escaped Sherrinford.”

 _Dammit_ , he thought to himself. A woman with frightful intelligence and an uncanny chameleon-like ability on the loose. “Do you have any potential tabs on her?”

“Unfortunately not. There was a massacre at the facility. That was what caused the delay in my arrival at the hospital room. I was taking care of that situation as best as possible and then the news reached me there had been an attempt to kidnap Molly.”

“Shit,” he breathed out. He took a deep breath and tried to center himself. “I’m not going to tell you where we are exactly but we’re in the States.”

“That complicates things just a tad, though if you happen to be in New York, Los Angeles or Washington DC, I have friends in high places there among the various politicians and police personnel.”

“I may just need that influence if things go sideways,” Seb said. “But for right now, we’re as safe and secure as we can get. I’ll do what I can to make sure it stays that way.”

“Good.” Mycroft paused then. “Keep the both of you safe, not just her. I think she would be truly devastated if any harm were to come to you.”

“Noted,” Seb said before hanging up. He looked over at Molly and then back at his cell phone. He had some calls to make. Mycroft had his connections on the right side of the law. Now would be the time to tap the wrong side of the law and call in a few favours...


	7. Chapter 7

Eventually, he moved Molly into the bedroom, trying to arrange her on the bed so that she was comfortable. He’d been shot before and he knew how painful a gunshot wound could be. Considering a few of his wounds had been potentially life-threatening and the pain had been far worse than what Molly was probably feeling, he was grateful she had just gotten hit in the arse.

It was going to take time for her to heal, obviously, but that made the idea of them staying in the penthouse even better. And with Eurus out and about, he didn’t want to risk things too much. But maybe later, towards Christmas and New Years, they could do some things out in the city. Obviously not ice skating at Rockafeller Center, but there were certain things in New York that would appeal to the tourist in her.

To be honest, the tourist in him, too, because as much as he liked New York City, it wasn’t home. Her house, with its big windows and comfortable furniture and exceptionally large kitchen...that had become home at some point in this long journey from unknown enemies to acquaintances to friends to lovers to this. What they were now, he wasn’t entirely sure, but when this was all over and it was safe, he was going to move into that home and hell, maybe even marry Molly, if she was willing.

He loved her. He hadn’t wanted to admit it before but he did. When Mary had said she’d been shot his heart had quite literally stopped for a moment and he had worried he had lost her before he’d ever been entirely honest with her. And he would tell her, sooner rather than later...but after he knew she felt the same, or at least strongly suspected she did.

But his thoughts were interrupted by a groan from the bed and he saw Molly had rolled over onto her back. “Bloody bullet wound,” she muttered before rolling back on her side.

“You just aren’t going to be comfortable until it’s healed, you know,” he said, his tone teasing.

“Mmm, this is a comfy bed, though,” she said. “And I’m sure I can sleep on you if I need to.”

“Like you don’t climb me like a tree in your sleep as it is?” he said with a chuckle. “I swear, for someone so short it’s like you’re trying to make the summit at Mount Everest. You just have to have my pillow almost exactly where my head is.”

“But you have the comfy pillow,” she said with a yawn. “I want the comfy pillow.”

“Maybe I’ll just sleep on you tonight,” he teased.

“Okay,” she said, her smile a bit on the sleepy side. “You can use my tits as a pillow.”

“Keep it up with that talk and we’ll find out just how painful it is for us to shag while you’ve got an arse injury.”

She swatted at him but was still smiling. “How long was I asleep?”

“Two hours, give or take. I called Mycroft, got some bad news and then made a few calls to less than savory people who owe me favors.”

“What was the bad news?” she asked, her smile dimming.

“Eurus has escaped. Mycroft would have been at the hospital sooner but he as dealing with that. But I have friends in low places as well as high who are going to look for her. I’ll keep you safe. I made that promise to you, after all.”

She nodded and finally grasped his hand, squeezing it. “I know you will, Seb. I have no doubt about that.”

He leaned over and kissed the back of her hand. “Good. Do you need food? The plane food was rather lacking.”

“God, I’m starved,” she said, waking up more. “What do you have?”

“I was thinking takeaway, and as this is one of those cities with amazing delivery programs, whatever you fancy, we’ll get. I have a stack of menus in the kitchen.” He nodded towards the door. “Want me to get them?”

“I mostly want comfort food,” she said.

“British?” he asked, and she nodded. “Then I know just the place. Don’t have a menu, but I know you well enough to know what you want.”

“Oh, I do so like you,” she said with a smile.

“And I like you too.” He’d almost said more, but this was a start. He had high hopes they’d get to that point sooner or later, but just not now. And that was fine; if he’d learned anything at all since he’d met her, Molly Hooper was a woman worth waiting for.


	8. Chapter 8

She had to sit on an inflatable donut to not put as much pressure on the wound, but he had the feeling whatever pain she might be in she was grinning and bearing it, though without all the grinning. Still, he could take care of changing bandages and disinfecting anything that might get infected, and if not, his friends in low places included access to an elite hospital that the underground used. Not that he needed to go there, but a regular hospital would just seem too risky.

There was a sense of anonymity in crowds, so if they went out and did things he could have them be discretely tailed by someone or someones who would notice any other tails. He’d worked with some of the best, after all, and while he’d gone on the up and up, somewhat, some of his compatriots hadn’t. He wasn’t about to turn them into the authorities and they knew that, so favours were still valid. All the dirt that had been spilled was on people higher up than him, in the upper echelons of the organization. Lower levels may even owe him a few new favours for getting rid of competition for all he knew, though New York had never had much in the way of a hold for the organization. That and Vegas had the mob and that was more than enough for Jim to make friends but not try and take over. Really, those were the two safest places because there were more allies than potential enemies running about.

And allies were so important when he was trying to keep Molly safe. He’d be open and honest about the fact there were going to be mob enforcers in the vicinity, but that was what it was going to take to keep her safe.

He hoped. Eurus scared him, not that he’d had much contact with her. She seemed to have had free run of Sherrinford because she had stayed in contact with Jim past that Christmas, but he had never really done more than answer the phone and pass it along to Jim. That had been enough. When he had talked about her and their plans…

If Jim had known Eurus was eventually going to target Molly, maybe he wouldn’t have been so gleeful. Jim did honestly have a soft spot for Molly, maybe because she treated him like he was normal. He’d even kept watching Glee after the dates, a fact he might tell Molly later. That was how _he_ knew all the damn arcs, at least until the show jumped the shark and he jumped ship. But he still had a soft spot for Lea Michele’s voice.

In fact, that was what they were watching now. He’d had an associate make a run after he ordered their food to get all the seasons of Glee on Blu-ray since he knew Molly only had their region DVDs. There had to be extras in spades to keep her occupied until he got arrangements for them to be able to leave the penthouse.

“You actually like this show, don’t you?” she asked, snuggling into him on the sofa. She was draped almost on top of him as he laid on his back and she had her head on his chest. His hand was stroking her arm and she had turned away from the screen to look at him.

“Well, up to a point. Then it went to shite and I stopped watching. Went back for the last episode, though. I think I can live with how it all ended up in the end.” He moved his hand to brush her hair back behind her ear. “We don’t have to watch the episodes right now if you want to just enjoy the special features. Wasn’t sure what was on the stuff you have at home and these.”

She grinned at him. “You know, you’re full of surprises, Sebastian Moran,” she said. She drummed her fingers on his chest for a moment. “Did you watch with…?”

He nodded. “He held on longer than I did,” Seb said. “Seemed to me you and the show gave him a sense of something I couldn’t. Even after you were out of the picture, he still wanted whatever it was.”

“It’s strange, sometimes, thinking of what your life with him was like. You don’t talk about it in too much detail, which I can understand, but...”

“Anything you want to know, ask and I’ll tell you,” he said, grasping her hand and bringing it to his lips. “No more secrets, remember?”

“I’m not sure what I want to know,” she admitted. “But knowing I can ask when I figure it out is a good thing to know.” She shut her eyes as he kissed each fingertip gently. “You’re going to get me in a mood and I hurt too much to be in that mood.”

He chuckled and set her hand down on his chest, still holding it. “Well, we’ll hold off until you decide the pain is worth it,” he said. “No matter how long it takes. But if you want to try anything, just know I’m as eager as you.”

“You are so incorrigible,” she said with a laugh before setting her head back down. “But I like that about you.”

“I’m glad,” he said, moving his hand to slide his hand up and down her back. Eventually, she was asleep again, as the meds must have been strong, and he reached over for the quilt they’d grabbed and pulled it over them, joining her in sleep.


End file.
